World's 10 most powerful cities

World's 10 most powerful cities

Mumbai -- the financial capital of the country and home to the Reserve Bank of India, the Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange of India, and many major corporations -- ranks 34th in the list of most powerful cities in the world, according to a survey by citymayors.com.

The city which never sleeps and is known for its fast paced lifestyle is the hottest business hub in India. The city has grown a lot in terms of infrastructure in the past few years. Highways and roads in particular undergo a constant makeover as the city prepares to accommodate a growing population and growing number of vehicles each day.

Mumbai, which also houses the biggest entertainment industry in the world, scores 166 points in the list of the world's most powerful cities.

The research, which was carried out in Japan for The Global Power Index 2009, assessed 35 cities from across the world based on six criteria: Economy, research and development, livability, accessibility, cultural interaction as well as ecology and natural environment.

Mumbai is the only Indian city in the list, that includes Beijing, Taipei, Los Angeles, Sydney, Seoul, et cetera.

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Image: Devotees carry a statue of elephant headed god Ganesh for its immersion into the Arabian Sea in Mumbai.Photographs: Punit Paranjpe/Reuters

World's 10 most powerful cities

Berlin relies heavily on economic activity in the services sector, while small- and medium-sized companies are also key to the city's growth.

Berlin is Germany's banking and financial centre and also an electrical equipment manufacturing hub.

Also food products, chemicals, mechanical engineering, and motor-vehicle manufacturing are some of Berlin's traditionally strong sectors.

Some of the fast-growing sectors in Berlin are communications, life sciences, information and communication technologies, media, advertising, biotechnology and environmental services, transportation and medical engineering.

Image: Ice sculptures in the shape of humans are placed on the steps of the music hall in Gendarmenmarkt public square in Berlin.Photographs: Tobias Schwarz/Reuters

World's 10 most powerful cities

Tourism generates impressive revenue for Vienna and a majority of the population works in the services sector.

Small and medium businesses are predominant in Vienna, which Austria's biggest economic centre.

The city being the capital of Austria houses many national administrative agencies, universities, schools and embassies.

Vienna is also home to international organisations and agencies. The International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization and other international associations are located in Vienna.

World's 10 most powerful cities

Zurich is the financial and commercial and economic centre of Switzerland. The city is home to leading financial institutions like Credit Suisse, Swiss Re, UBS, and many other banking giants.

While banking and insurance sectors are moving at a fast pace in Zurich, the traditional machine industries also have a concrete base in this city. Also, most of the research and development centers are concentrated in Zurich.

The low rate of tax in Zurich attracts overseas companies to set up their offices there, and large corporations like Google, Microsoft, ABB, General Motors Europe and IBM have their offices in the city.

The Swiss Stock Exchange is also situated in the Zurich.

Image: A teddy bear with a painted Eiffel tower on its chest stands in front of the Fraumuenster church (L) and the St. Peter church on the Quai bridge in Zurich.Photographs: Sebastian Derungs/Reuters

World's 10 most powerful cities

Hong Kong is a global center for trade and the government here plays a very passive role in the financial industry, mostly leaving the direction of the economy to market movements and the private sector.

The country has a high concentration of international corporate headquarters, and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange is one of the largest stock markets in the world.

Hong Kong had established extensive trade and investment ties with China, while the United States and Japan are also its largest export markets.

Image: Office workers chat in front of a decoration for the Year of the Ox at Hong Kong's financial Central district.Photographs: Bobby Yip/Reuters